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Sunday, 22 May 2011

Asian Wedding Magazines Summer 2011: Asiana Wedding vs Asian Bride

Asian wedding blog "Asian Wedding Ideas" recently posted a poll asking readers to choose their favourite asian wedding magazine cover from recent issues of Asiana Wedding and Asian Bride Magazine (you can view the results of the poll here). I didn't vote, because I couldn't choose...and I don't mean in a good way! Here are my thoughts on the Summer 2011 covers for Asiana Wedding and Asian Bride:

First up Asiana Wedding, you can view the front cover here.
The first word that came to mind when I saw this cover was "boring". Ok you can't go wrong with a red bridal outfit with gold jewellery, but I'd have liked to see something with a bit more of a "summer" feel to it. Perhaps I've been reading these magazines for too long, but this look really doesn't inspire me at all, sure it's a pretty photo of a pretty bride but it's a look I've seen before so many times. The other major thing to point out is the fact that it's a non-asian model (at least she doesn't look asian to me), there's always going to be debates about the use of non-asian models in magazines aimed at an asian audience and we all know the arguments on both sides - the question is, would an asian bride-to-be aspire to the look shown on this front cover?

The things that Asiana Wedding lacked, Asian Bride has plenty of - their magazine has a very summer-y feel to it and there's actual asian people on there too!
There's a new team at Asian Woman Magazine and Asian Bride and overall I'd say they've made an improvement. Recent issues of Asian Woman Mag have featured celebrities like The Sugababes and Alesha Dixon on the covers and now they're trying out the same with Asian Bride. All very good in theory, but sadly I'm not overly impressed by their choice of celebrities - Sunny and Shay from The Family. They're a little bit 2009 for my liking, and besides that, we all saw their wedding on TV - who wants to see them dress up as bride and groom again? Not me!
Now I'm no expert on magazine covers and what sells, but most mainstream magazine covers have the subject facing the camera, inviting the reader in perhaps? In this case they're looking at each other, perhaps to portray a "look of love" but to me as a reader this front cover doesn't look very inviting at all!

7 comments:

agree with this post nazma. asiana are boring, and no asian bride is ever going to be able to relate to the cover or the non asian models inside. yawwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn pretty girl, pretty lengha and nice make up, wow thats like the best idea ever!

asian women is still rubbish. they think putting celebs (ahem) on the cover will make people them cool. doesnt work. its old and tacky. how about they actual employee and creative team that no what their doing. the mag is a reflection of the ideas behind the team. cringe.

however at least asiana produce a decent clean, professional magazine cant say the same about asian women. it always look messy and badly put together

I totally agree with the comments made in this post. Every Asiana mag is the same, there isnt ever anything different from each one other than the front cover which I must admit is becoming tedious.

Why dont they try using asian models to represent their readers and showcase different designers instead of the same names you can find in places such as Southall and Birmingham. Maybe showcase up and coming designers and collections from india? Would be nice to see something different...ive bought many asiana mags leading up to my wedding in August and i have now stopped because the content is all the same, pages and pages of boring ads where they use the same models with the same hairstyles and jewellery not worth the £4.50 or whatever it is you pay for it.

i tweeted about my frustration on uninspiring asian women magazines earlier. i haven't bought one in such a long time, so had a look at what was on offer today whilst i was out. its the same looks, same 'celebs', same unoriginal styling over and over again.

i crave to see editorials that are imaginative and inspiring. we have a culture full of beautiful inspiration! and if they're going to do the whole east west fusion thing, then please think outside the box!

to pay near enough £5 magazine that offers nothing new each time [plus is it just me, but issues like asiana are getting thinner by each season] is asking abit too much.

i do agree with Anon though; to Asiana's credit, they produce at least more professional looking issues.

its such a shame because both mags do have the potential to be huge but they let their back un imagintive ideas get the better of them.

so bored of seeing the same european girls made to look like asian girls in an attempto to advertise the garment and magazine. so, what are they suppose to look better than the original, the original being asian women. what a typical asian out look on things. white is right, the paler you are the more beautiful you are. as a bride to be (2012) i could never relate to the stuff in asiana. its nice to look at the maga ever now and again but i woukld never buy it because its rubbish. the editorials are boring always using the same boring faces, airbrushed with an inch of thier life. anisha vasani should drop her attitude and start cooperating with the asian industry in order othelp built and promote asian talent, whther thats designers, musicians, models, etc. instead she uses her personal feuds. asian women is no better either. is it still embarassing to be seen to buy? i am not sure because i have not looked at it for over a year. i refuse to too. its a bit of a joke. sack both the editors and start using fresh minds with fresh ideas!

the asian women cover is ok. not great but atleast its a little different. but what is with the quality? and who are those people? but credit atleast they are actually asian. when have i ever seen a asian/european girl on the cover of black hair and beauty.

the same adverts in both magazines all the time. sorry if this post is a little controversial but i 100 per cent stand by what i said. and well done asianfashion blog for highlighting this. i wish you would blog more issues such as this

I refuse to pay almost £5 for any magazine which is basically a bunch of glossy adverts linked by the odd 500 word comment on the latest uber desi celeb.

Neither Asiana nor Asian Woman appeal to me. Asiana has always used lightskinned asian models or non asian models, as an asian woman if I want to see white women airbrushed to within an inch of their life I will stick to buying the mainstream glossies.

I second the opinion that for around £5.00 an issue, Asian Woman Magazine AND Asian Bride magazine needs to give us more than adverts for various shops. I think they need to do an issue every now and then that we can relate to...I remember reading an article a few months ago about a rich couple (i.e. Sultan's daughter and some equivalent hubby)'s wedding and their extravaganza,. While nice to look at, it doesn't give much for the readers to take away with them when planning for their own weddings (except the message that we need to spend more!)

great comments ladies. i agree with what each and every one of you have said. basically in a nutshell their both rubbish in comparison to how much the reader is spending. i would actually love to see the consumer purchase percentage on both mags to see if it has dropped. this issue with asiana is always being raised. white models or shall i be more specific and say any race but asian made to look asian models. asiana bridal show- example 1 of 100. what was all that about? non asian girls jumping up and down the catwalk wearing saris and bridal lenghas. yes they are models its their job but it is NEVER going to sell a product. the 3 asians girls stood out a mile because they actually looked the part and the audience 99 per cent asian may i add- could relate to them. asiana is a complete sell out. everybody behind the mag is asian so why does it produce such an anti-asian magazine. the artciles are silly too. they have nothing decent to talk about and end of exaggerating a very small issue. it does nothing to promote emerging talent...apart from a few small lines. unless someone has already broken through it will not even feature them. the batchelor stuff is a complete facade. very good idea but perhaps not excercised in the right manner. now i am not telling the editor hoe to do her job but come on women, have u lost the passion for ur role?!!!

Asian Women...now now where do i start. I will credit them for being a more asian magazine, even though they dont have a clue what theyre doing. firstly sort the quality out. invest some damn money in to it and re build that awful reputation it has previously had. use better models-actual models, not girls off the stree that think they are models. get more articulate journalists who research before they wirte

It is a magazine, use it as a platform to raise some good issues. I can just tell, that they pick up magz like vogue, marie Claire and just add some the features and desi-fy them. That is the most certainly the ides behind the magazine. Showcase international and home grown talent, look into REAL political issues affecting our community. Come onnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn its not always about what bollywood star is wearing what and even if u do want to feature something like that do it well!!! Feature stars with some sense of style! Not just actresses wearing tacky dresses. Look into Sonam Kapoor.

Agreed with the above to anon too, well done asian fashion blog about raising this issue. Controversy and real issues within fashion is the way forward. Next step………..top 10 designers, top 10 models, top 10 fashion outlets? Top 10 shows?